So, it's a busy day for this librarian: I had two programs, one at Eastern Regional High School, and one at the Vogelson/Voorhees branch. One program was book-based, the other game-based. One was conversational, the other so loud I could barely hear myself think. Both totally wonderful, totally exhausting (but somehow, energizing, too!) and both reminded me that I'm in the right field working with teens, helping to keep them connected to the library.
At Eastern, Mrs. Donna Leatherman once more opened up her Senior High Media Center to an after-school discussion of books. At BookSpace, we don't choose one title and make everyone read it -- that'd be too much like school. We ask everyone to bring a copy of whatever they've read recently and loved, and to share it with the group. Conversations are lively, full of follow-up recommendations, and there's a nice mix of students and teachers.
I always leave feeling energized and better connected with the students at Eastern. It's a great way to feel on a Tuesday afternoon.
By contrast, picture this afternoon's gaming extravaganza: Four people playing Pokemon on Nintendo DS, another four playing Wii Bowling, teaching other people how to use the Wii-motes, another person downloading manga fan art, a handful of gamers just sitting around talking strategy (and, okay, some trash, too), while two more play a shooter game (Rated T -- I checked) with an XBox 360 hooked up to one of the library's digital projectors. It's insanely loud, with about ten different conversations going on, playful Japanese insults being hurled in every direction, and Pokemon being wirelessly traded every few minutes.
In both cases, it's a little chaotic, it's joyful, and most of all, it's the teens of this community gathering together to do something that matters to them. And that, friends, is made out of awesome.
